Massachusetts 2025-2026 Regular Session

Massachusetts House Bill H897 Compare Versions

Only one version of the bill is available at this time.

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1	1	1 of 1
2	2	HOUSE DOCKET, NO. 567 FILED ON: 1/10/2025
3	3	HOUSE . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . No. 897
4	4	The Commonwealth of Massachusetts
5	5	_________________
6	6	PRESENTED BY:
7	7	Michelle L. Badger
8	8	_________________
9	9	To the Honorable Senate and House of Representatives of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts in General
10	10	Court assembled:
11	11	The undersigned legislators and/or citizens respectfully petition for the adoption of the accompanying bill:
12	12	An Act to overcome coastal and environmental acidification and nutrient pollution.
13	13	_______________
14	14	PETITION OF:
15	15	NAME:DISTRICT/ADDRESS :DATE ADDED:Michelle L. Badger1st Plymouth1/10/2025 1 of 7
16	16	HOUSE DOCKET, NO. 567 FILED ON: 1/10/2025
17	17	HOUSE . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . No. 897
18	18	By Representative Badger of Plymouth, a petition (accompanied by bill, House, No. 897) of
19	19	Michelle L. Badger relative to coastal and environmental acidification and nutrient pollution.
20	20	Environment and Natural Resources.
21	21	[SIMILAR MATTER FILED IN PREVIOUS SESSION
22	22	SEE HOUSE, NO. 793 OF 2023-2024.]
23	23	The Commonwealth of Massachusetts
24	24	_______________
25	25	In the One Hundred and Ninety-Fourth General Court
26	26	(2025-2026)
27	27	_______________
28	28	An Act to overcome coastal and environmental acidification and nutrient pollution.
29	29	Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives in General Court assembled, and by the authority
30	30	of the same, as follows:
31	31	1 SECTION 1. Chapter 6 of the General Laws is hereby amended by inserting after Section
32	32	215LLLLLL the following section:-
33	33	3 Section 15MMMMMM. The governor shall annually issue a proclamation setting apart
34	34	4the third full week in August as Ocean Acidification Awareness Week and recommending that
35	35	5the day be observed in an appropriate manner by the people, promoting citizen science initiatives
36	36	6and action by the general public not only to preserve the health of the coastline but also to
37	37	7generate valuable scientific data for the commonwealth. 2 of 7
38	38	8 SECTION 2. Section 1 of chapter 21N of the General Laws, as appearing in the 2020
39	39	9Official Edition, is hereby amended by inserting after the definition of “Carbon dioxide
40	40	10equivalent” the following 4 definitions:-
41	41	11 “Coastal acidification”, the acidification of coastal waters driven by background ocean
42	42	12acidification, eutrophication, freshwater inputs, atmospheric deposition and any other natural or
43	43	13anthropogenic stressor.
44	44	14 “Coastal stressors”, eutrophication, nutrient pollution, freshwater inputs and atmospheric
45	45	15deposition from the coast acidifying coastal waters.
46	46	16 “Coastal waters”, any waters and associated submerged lands of the ocean, including the
47	47	17seabed and subsoil, lying between the coast and the seaward boundary of the commonwealth, as
48	48	18defined in 43 U.S.C. 1312.
49	49	19 “Coastal watershed”, the Merrimack, Parker, Ipswich, North Coastal, Mystic, Neponset,
50	50	20Charles, South Coastal, Cape Cod, Islands, Buzzards Bay, Taunton and Narragansett watersheds.
51	51	21 SECTION 3. Said section 1 of said chapter 21N, as so appearing, is hereby further
52	52	22amended by inserting after the definition of “Entity” the following definition:-
53	53	23 “Eutrophication”, a condition of coastal or fresh waters having elevated nutrient
54	54	24concentrations.
55	55	25 SECTION 4. Said section 1 of said chapter 21N, as so appearing, is hereby further
56	56	26amended by inserting after the definition of “Nature-based solutions” the following definition:-
57	57	27 “Ocean acidification”, the acidification of the greater Atlantic ocean driven by
58	58	28atmospheric carbon deposition independent of coastal stressors. 3 of 7
59	59	29 SECTION 5. Section 10 of said chapter 21N, as so appearing, is hereby amended by
60	60	30inserting after the word “surge”, in line 9, the following words:- , ocean and coastal acidification.
61	61	31 SECTION 6.. Said chapter 21N is hereby amended by adding the following section:-
62	62	32 Section 12. (a) There shall be an ocean acidification council to consist of 11 members:
63	63	33the secretary of energy and environmental affairs, who shall be the chair; the director of coastal
64	64	34zone management or a designee; the commissioner of environmental protection or a designee;
65	65	35the director of the Massachusetts environmental policy act office or a designee; the director of
66	66	36marine fisheries or a designee, the director of ecological restoration or a designee; the
67	67	37commissioner of agricultural resources or a designee; and 4 public members to be appointed by
68	68	38the governor, 1 of whom shall be a member of a private monitoring organization in the state, 1
69	69	39of whom shall be a member of the state shellfishing industry, 1 of whom shall be a scientist
70	70	40specializing in coastal conservation and 1 of whom shall be a member of the Massachusetts
71	71	41Municipal Association, Inc.
72	72	42 (b) The council shall: (i) work to further understand and take action against the threat
73	73	43posed by ocean and coastal acidification; (ii) engage with and, to the extent practicable,
74	74	44coordinate public and private monitoring efforts; (iii) harmonize data gathering; (iv) provide
75	75	45monitoring hardware and technical training; (v) maintain a central repository for acidification
76	76	46data; and (vi) recommend mitigative interventions for coastal stressors or adaptive technologies
77	77	47for aquaculture, prioritizing nature-based solutions to manage stormwater and reduce nutrient
78	78	48pollution. The council may direct monies from the Ocean Acidification Fund established in
79	79	49section 2PPPPPP of chapter 29 to target existing programs and novel approaches to restore and
80	80	50buffer marine habitats and resources impacted by acidification. 4 of 7
81	81	51 (c) Within 1 year of the council’s formation, the council shall perform and publish a gap
82	82	52analysis for ocean monitoring with recommended measures for creating an appropriate spatial
83	83	53and temporal resolution to model ocean acidification in coastal waters and project acidification
84	84	54trends. The council shall convene a public workshop with local ocean monitoring groups to
85	85	55ascertain monitoring needs and inform the analysis, and hold 2 public hearings. The analysis
86	86	56shall identify appropriate monitoring technologies and select coastal waters where ocean
87	87	57acidification monitoring equipment shall be placed. The ocean acidification monitoring system
88	88	58shall enable modeling for long term pH changes in coastal waters and permit short-term
89	89	59monitoring of aragonite saturation in variable and sensitive coastal waters to protect critical
90	90	60habitat and shellfish.
91	91	61 (d) The council shall coordinate implementation of the ocean acidification monitoring
92	92	62system, implementing the system within 3 years of the effective date of this section. The council
93	93	63shall ensure that data derived from the monitoring system is publicly accessible in a standardized
94	94	64format useful for public and private research.
95	95	65 (e) The council may commission independent studies and agency reports to fill
96	96	66acidification knowledge gaps. The council shall commission the studies and reports as soon as
97	97	67practicable, beginning at a later date if dependent on data derived from the ocean acidification
98	98	68monitoring system described in subsection (d). The council shall avoid duplicating regional
99	99	69efforts, incorporating best available science with data from the ocean acidification monitoring
100	100	70system established in subsection (d) and data from local and private monitoring efforts where
101	101	71available. These efforts shall include, but shall not be limited to: 5 of 7
102	102	72 (i) modeling ocean and coastal acidification trends in coastal waters and project
103	103	73acidification trends;
104	104	74 (ii) studying the effects of acidification on marine species that are ecologically or
105	105	75economically important or understudied. The study shall examine the impact of multimodal
106	106	76stress and shall include, at minimum, a study of acidification effects on the American lobster,
107	107	77Eastern oyster, sea scallops, quahogs and fin fish;
108	108	78 (iii) clarifying the causal relationship between nutrient pollution, eutrophication and
109	109	79coastal acidification in coastal waters;
110	110	80 (iv) determining how different coastal stressors contribute to coastal acidification;
111	111	81 (v) estimating the economic impacts of modeled and projected acidification on the
112	112	82commonwealth’s economy;
113	113	83 (vi) determining if current total maximum daily loads under the Massachusetts estuaries
114	114	84project are sufficient to keep acidity in Massachusetts embayments within the ranges required by
115	115	85314 CMR 4.05 through 2050 and proposing changes to 314 CMR §§ 4 and 5 and total maximum
116	116	86daily loads if needed, taking into account ocean and coastal acidification as particularized
117	117	87stressors;
118	118	88 (vii) performing cost-benefit analyses of intervention strategies to determine where
119	119	89pollution reductions will most efficiently resilience acidification; and
120	120	90 (viii) developing best adaptive practices for the shellfishing industry to use to adapt to
121	121	91acidification. 6 of 7
122	122	92 (f) If the council determines that eutrophication has more than a de minimis impact on
123	123	93coastal acidification in any given embayment or coastal zone, the council may implement
124	124	94necessary improvements in the most efficient manner to reduce eutrophication. The council may
125	125	95target funds from the Ocean Acidification Fund established in section 2PPPPPP of chapter 29 to
126	126	96existing state programs or proposed municipal projects for the purposes of:
127	127	97 (i) financing necessary upgrades to publicly owned treatment works located in coastal
128	128	98watersheds to achieve enhanced nutrient removal;
129	129	99 (ii) replacing septic systems in nutrient sensitive coastal watersheds with connections to
130	130	100new or existing publicly owned treatment works, or upgrading existing systems to nitrogen-
131	131	101reducing systems; and
132	132	102 (iii) implementing other appropriate measures, including but not limited to installing
133	133	103permeable reactive barriers and funding salt marsh restoration.
134	134	104 SECTION 7. Chapter 29 of the General Laws is hereby amended by inserting after
135	135	105section 2OOOOOO, as inserted by section 13 of chapter 358 of the acts of 2020, the following
136	136	106section:-
137	137	107 Section 2PPPPPP. (a) There shall be established and set upon the books of the
138	138	108commonwealth a separate fund to be known as the Ocean Acidification Fund. The ocean
139	139	109acidification council shall administer the fund. Notwithstanding any general or special law to the
140	140	110contrary, there shall be credited to the fund any revenue subject to appropriations or other money
141	141	111authorized by the general court and specifically designated to be credited to the fund and any
142	142	112gifts, grants, private contributions, investment income earned by the fund's assets and any
143	143	113designated funds from other sources. No expenditures from the fund shall cause the fund to be in 7 of 7
144	144	114deficiency at the close of the fiscal year. Any money in the fund at the end of the fiscal year shall
145	145	115not revert to the General Fund, shall be available for expenditure in the subsequent year and shall
146	146	116not be subject to section 5C.
147	147	117 (b) Amounts credited to the fund shall be expended, without further appropriation, for the
148	148	118purposes of restoring and buffering marine habitats and resources impacted by acidification and
149	149	119financing infrastructure improvements to reduce eutrophication as provided in section 12 of
150	150	120chapter 21N.
151	151	121 SECTION 8. Section 61 of chapter 30 of the General Laws, as appearing in the 2020
152	152	122Official Edition, is hereby amended by inserting after the word “rise”, in line 16, the following
153	153	123words:- and coastal ocean acidification.